Report Saugatuck Transit Oriented Development Plan Westport, Connecticut Historic Resources Inventory Update and Recommendations May 10, 2017 PAL No. 3332 Submitted to: Barton Partners 700 E Main St #30 Norristown, PA 19401 The Town of Westport (Town) is preparing a Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Plan (the Project) for the Saugatuck Station neighborhood of Westport, Connecticut (Figure 1). As part of Task 2 Technical Analysis by the Barton Partners’ team, The Public Archaeology Laboratory, Inc. (PAL) completed an Historic Resources Inventory (HRI) Update for the Project Study Area, including the development of historic preservation planning recommendations (Figure 2). The Town received a grant award for the Project from the State of Connecticut Office of Policy & Management. All work was conducted in coordination with the Saugatuck TOD Steering Committee (the Committee) and relevant subcommittees. Past Surveys and Planning Recommendations The Saugatuck neighborhood has been identified as a place of distinctive history and character in town planning documents and by the Westport Historic District Commission (HDC) at least since the 1980s. The Saugatuck neighborhood, including sections outside the Study Area, was recommended as potentially eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (National Register) and the State Register of Historic Places (State Register) in the report for a historic resources survey of Saugatuck completed in 1986/1987. The nomination boundaries were described as the area along the Saugatuck River from the railroad, including Railroad Place on the south, and along both sides of Riverside Avenue north to Raymond Place and 375–377 Riverside Avenue (Bedford and Lucas 1987). HDC files indicate that 61 properties in the Study Area have been previously surveyed. One property was surveyed in 1982–1984, 58 properties were surveyed in 1986/1987, and two were surveyed in 1988. In 1986/1987, the entire Saugatuck area was surveyed including properties in the Study Area and properties on the west side of Saugatuck Avenue and north from the Riverside-Treadwell- Saugatuck avenues intersection to approximately Raymond Place (Bedford and Lucas 1987). The Westport Historic Districts and Properties Handbook of 1996 (1996 Handbook) recommended that a National Register nomination be prepared for Saugatuck, including the Riverside Avenue/Saugatuck Avenue vicinity, the Westport-Saugatuck Railroad Station, the Saugatuck Bridges, and Bridge Street/Imperial Avenue vicinity (Gibbs 1996:1-5, 1-16) (see Figure 2). The two 26 Main Street Pawtucket, RI 02860 Tel: 401.728.8780 Fax: 401.728.8784 www.palinc.com Report Saugatuck Transit Oriented Development Plan Historic Resources Inventory Update and Recommendations page 2 of 37 bridges over the Saugatuck River abutting, but outside, the Study Area east boundary––the Route 136/Bridge Street Bridge and the Amtrak Railroad Bridge––were listed individually in the National and State Registers in 1987. A nomination is currently being prepared for the Bridge Street/Imperial Avenue Historic District by PAL as a consultant for the Town. The Westport Historic Districts and Properties Handbook Part II, Recommendations for Future Action update prepared in 1997 reiterated the 1996 recommendations for Saugatuck (PAL 1997). In 2008, the Westport completed a Recommendations Report for Potential Historic Districts, which included recommendations for two local historic districts of residential streets in Saugatuck: Riverside Avenue/Raymond Place and Franklin Street/Saugatuck Avenue (Associated Cultural Resources Consultants 2008). The Westport Historic Commission Handbook of 2009 (2009 Handbook), which updated the 1996 Handbook and incorporated the intervening reports, referenced Saugatuck as an identifiable area with a distinct sense of history and place that is worthy of protection and noted the establishment of a General Business District/Saugatuck (GBD/S) zoning district requires the input of the HDC. The GDB/S covers two areas of recent development, one on both sides of Riverside Avenue between Interstate 95 and Ketchum Street, and one roughly between the north side of Ketchum Street, Franklin Street, and Riverside Avenue. The purpose of the GDB/S, as stated in the zoning regulations, is to “encourage residential development including affordable housing in addition to the commercial, office, and retail currently allowed … to enhance and conserve the area’s aesthetic appeal and historic scale massing and character, pedestrian access, and recreational water-related uses and views while limiting the intensity of development…” The Saugatuck regulations provide certain relief for design in the interest of maintaining the historic character of the area (Gibbs 2009:2-5, 3-5, 4-6, 4-20). The 2009 Handbook noted Saugatuck as an area deemed eligible by the HDC for designation as a Local Historic District, and recommended Saugatuck for Historic Design District zoning designation by the Planning and Zoning Commission. It also noted that the HDC has authority to recommend properties for nomination to the National Register (Gibbs 2009:5-2, 5-3, Appendix E). The 2007 Westport Town Plan of Conservation and Development (Plan) identified Saugatuck as the area lying between the east side of Saugatuck Avenue and the Saugatuck River that extends south from the Saugatuck-Riverside-Treadwell avenues intersection to Ferry Lane. The Plan focused on improving the appearance and functioning of commercial areas and minimizing negative influences on neighboring residential quality of life. In Saugatuck, the Plan emphasized the development as a transit hub with commercial and parking facilities and the impact of traffic congestion. The Plan recommended “that future development be configured so that Saugatuck Center maintains its existing character and a similar scale of its buildings and streetscapes” (Town of Westport 2007:7-12) while continuing to provide small-scale business, riverfront access, housing, and transit services. The Plan recommended consideration of adoption of a new zoning district or overlay zone in Saugatuck as a Village District (Town of Westport 2007:7-1, 7-11, 7-12, 7-17). The Plan is currently being updated. Methodology The HRI Update for the Saugatuck Study Area was conducted in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Identification (NPS 1983) and National Register Bulletin 24, Guidelines for Local Surveys: A Basis for Preservation Planning (NPS 1985). It followed the procedures and requirements of the HDC and the Connecticut Commission on Cultural and Report Saugatuck Transit Oriented Development Plan Historic Resources Inventory Update and Recommendations page 3 of 37 Tourism/State Historic Preservation Office. The scope of specific tasks was determined by the resources available to support an HRI Update. PAL’s initial estimate was for 45 previously surveyed properties in the Study Area; however, on closer review, there are 61 properties. The discrepancy was due to the enlargement of the Study Area between the writing of the proposal and the execution of the contract and to differences between the town assessor’s parcel information (where multiple addresses might now be on one parcel) used for the original count and the HRI list and street addresses encountered during fieldwork. During scope negotiations, the Town and PAL agreed that PAL would select 10 properties for additional research, description observations, and completion of a new updated HRI form. PAL reviewed and assessed the Town’s existing HRI properties in the Study Area and selected 10 key and representative properties for new forms based on the contexts of the character of Saugatuck and the anticipated possible Project impacts. The criteria considered architecture, location, historical importance, relationship to each other in a streetscape, integrity, and potential threats. PAL provided the list of 10 selected properties to the Town for review and confirmation (see Results below). Archival Research PAL received and reviewed a copy of the 1986/1987 survey, all earlier and later inventory forms from the HDC, and relevant past preservation reports and Town plans. PAL conducted archival research to complete the inventory forms for the 10 selected properties and to identify historic contexts using the collections of the Connecticut State Archives and Library, Westport Public Library, and Westport Historical Society. PAL received and reviewed information regarding the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation’s Historic Mill of Connecticut inventory, which included five properties in Saugatuck (CTHP 2017). Online sources such as Ancestry.com were also consulted. Among the documentary sources reviewed were historical maps, town records, town and regional histories, historic directories, historical photographs, public safety inspection records, genealogy and census records, and newspapers and organizational records. Individuals knowledgeable about the history of Saugatuck and of specific historic properties were identified and interviewed if available. Fieldwork PAL conducted a field survey from the public way of previously surveyed properties to observe and note whether changes had occurred since the 1986/1987 survey and to take high-quality digital photographs. Property locations were verified on field maps. Fieldwork for the 10 properties selected for new forms also included inspection to note existing conditions, style, materials, notable features, and setting. Results PAL